Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations

Most U.S. Residents Back ‘Guarantee’ Health Care System, Survey Finds

Seventy-eight percent of United States residents support government-regulated health care, and two-thirds said they support a health care "guarantee," like systems in Canada and Great Britain, according to a survey released Wednesday by a division of the Civil Society Institute, Long Island Newsday reports. According to the survey of 1,020 adults, while 85% said they have health insurance, the majority experienced cost increases or reductions in coverage.

The survey also found that 20% of respondents said they skip or reduce dosages of prescription medications because of cost. Further, more than one-third said they were already or would consider buying medication from Canada or other countries. "What this survey shows is a nation in the grips of a health care crisis. Americans are now prepared to embrace some tough ideas," Pam Solo, president of CSI, said (Marshall, Long Island Newsday, 9/16). The survey is available online. You must have Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the report.

Canadian System

In related news, Canada's former Prime Minister Jean Chretien on Wednesday noted that his country's single-payer health care system works well, but he did not go so far as to recommend a similar system for the United States. Speaking at the Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Area Chamber of Commerce, he said, "It's complicated, [the U.S.] system. But it's not for me to tell you what to do, especially in the middle of a campaign" (Schoffner, AP/Omaha World-Herald, 9/16).

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